title: The impact of postmastectomy radiotherapy on local control in patients with invasive lobular breast cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this population-based study was to examine the impact of postmastectomy radiotherapy on the risk of local recurrence in patients with invasive lobular breast cancer (ILC).
  
  
  METHODS
  The population-based Eindhoven Cancer Registry was used to select all patients with ILC, who underwent mastectomy in five general hospitals in the southern part of the Netherlands between 1995 and 2002. Of the 499 patients 383 patients fulfilled the eligibility criteria. Of these patients, 170 (44.4%) had received postmastectomy radiotherapy. The median follow-up was 7.2 years. Fourteen patients (3.7%) were lost to follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During follow-up 22 patients developed a local recurrence, of whom 4 had received postmastectomy radiotherapy. The 5-year actuarial risk of local recurrence was 2.1% for the patients with and 8.7% for the patients without postmastectomy radiotherapy. After adjustment for age at diagnosis, tumour stage and adjuvant systemic treatment, the patients who underwent postmastectomy radiotherapy were found to have a more than 3 times lower risk of local recurrence compared to the patients without (Hazard Ratio 0.30; 95% Confidence Interval: 0.10-0.89).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Local control is excellent for patients with ILC who undergo postmastectomy radiotherapy and significantly better than for patients not receiving radiotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Lindy A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Diepenmaat
authors.forename: Maurice J C
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: van der Sangen
authors.forename: Lonneke V
authors.initials: LV
authors.lastname: van de Poll-Franse
authors.forename: Mike W P M
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: van Beek
authors.forename: Charles L H
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: van Berlo
authors.forename: Ernest J T
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Luiten
authors.forename: Grard A P
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Nieuwenhuijzen
authors.forename: Adri C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Voogd
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008408:Mastectomy; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000517:prevention & control; D009426:Netherlands; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome